If I were King part 2

[reed28n]

Excellent Point

This began when stockoutboard stopped racing stockoutboards..Going back to true stockoutboards ????might save the beast---don't know.

Another thing someone said that a few regions feel that everything is cooool..Good point if ya get to play alot ya would think this.
Problem is the same regions with the most races also have the highest # of members and will vote accordingly. Truly this could be the real cause of a Failing APBA

Tammy Dawe requested equal reprsentation for all regions it might help slant the table away from regions with out pain!

Aside from representation, larger regions have had the "I don't see what it would hurt" mantality. I have stated many times, if you are hosting races week after week with a limited number of classes, the new drivers you attract are targeted to those classes. In Regions where you are racing multiple categories and two or three times as many classes, you risk losing a new driver to a class that is not raced nationally.

The argument has always been to rely on our members to be responsible and help new drivers make the right choices to grow our sport. For the most part I would agree that current racers have good intentions, but you might encourage a new guy to buy you 2nd or 3rd motor at a discount to unload it and help out. When in reality the right choice to sustain new memebrs is to get them out front capable equipment.

How do we do that? Eliminate parity committees and allow new motors to dominate classes .... too radical???

I think that it is working in the J category.

While there is some rumbling about parity with the OMC....the J category is the only category that grows year over year and they lose drivers each year by age and size to other categories.

[Big Don]

I must have missed the thread or post that said there are area’s in the country that are not hurting. Can someone enlighten me to these states or Regions?

While I agree we can do many things different and we should do them…
Year after year 40%-45% race less than 3 times a year. Have we ever taken the time to find/figure out why that is? Isn’t this our low hanging fruit that could make an impact on our numbers immediately if we can get them to race more? I keep seeing we need to market more on these threads. (And we do) Isn’t one of the basic rules that it’s cheaper to keep a customer than it is to get a new one. We have customers that are not using their investments, we need to know and understand why that is. Could be the very same reasons we have a hard time landing new customers??? This is not a statement it’s a question.

We are not going to change thing overnight and it could take years to build our numbers back up to where we have 8 – 12 boat fields every weekend at all our races. Even with new equipment it’s going to take years. So how do we get that 45% to race more? Maybe we can’t and it’s just the nature of the beast . Scary part is if you take that to 6 races the number is almost 70%.

Another scary number is if you count just the drivers who raced at least 1 class 8 or more times in 2010, that is only 151 drivers out of 374.

[raceright]

I must have missed the thread or post that said there are area’s in the country that are not hurting. Can someone enlighten me to these states or Regions?

While I agree we can do many things different and we should do them…
Year after year 40%-45% race less than 3 times a year. Have we ever taken the time to find/figure out why that is? Isn’t this our low hanging fruit that could make an impact on our numbers immediately if we can get them to race more? I keep seeing we need to market more on these threads. (And we do) Isn’t one of the basic rules that it’s cheaper to keep a customer than it is to get a new one. We have customers that are not using their investments, we need to know and understand why that is. Could be the very same reasons we have a hard time landing new customers??? This is not a statement it’s a question.

We are not going to change thing overnight and it could take years to build our numbers back up to where we have 8 – 12 boat fields every weekend at all our races. Even with new equipment it’s going to take years. So how do we get that 45% to race more? Maybe we can’t and it’s just the nature of the beast . Scary part is if you take that to 6 races the number is almost 70%.

Another scary number is if you count just the drivers who raced at least 1 class 8 or more times in 2010, that is only 151 drivers out of 374.

It is easier to keep cheap customers than get good one's is what ya mean.

interestingly enough in the 80's region 5 had 25 to 30 races a year with combined mod stock pro..full fields in most classes to include 500cch.
Last I heard they might have 3 or 4 races a year and almost no bore and stroke pro's. Except for when the USTS show's up and that is not every year.

If membership declines because of memberships voting records and enforcement of special intrest ideals who do you really blame????

[ram95]

Local racing is where things happen. APBA is a lot more than us. J/SO/MO/PRO are just a few spokes in the wheel. Blaming APBA leadership is a crock when we have 'Local control' of what we put on for races. Each Region has the ability to scour their area for race-sites, race-rigs, and to provide the the attraction/incentives to lure people in. I personally don't want my dues increased so that "APBA" can give my money for some ad campaign.

What we Commissioners need to do is quit erecting more barriers (arbitrary rules) and make every effort to eliminate ambiguous wording or duplicitous crap where it exists.

A good start would be dumping the picklefork rules, dumping the cockpit reinforcement rules; agreeing on how bearing away should be viewed; agreeing on what constitutes on overlap; dumping the flak requirement; dumping any ideas for mandatory jacket/cut-suit recerts; remove engine height restrictions; and re-instating the tohatsu as a legal motor in D-mod... for starters.

Alex

[BP125V]

yep

Local racing is where things happen. APBA is a lot more than us. J/SO/MO/PRO are just a few spokes in the wheel. Blaming APBA leadership is a crock when we have 'Local control' of what we put on for races. Each Region has the ability to scour their area for race-sites, race-rigs, and to provide the the attraction/incentives to lure people in. I personally don't want my dues increased so that "APBA" can give my money for some ad campaign.


Alex

Well put Alex.

[raceright]

Well put Alex.

Sounds like ya are happy with the way it is----many are,but remember as costs increase the few left will have to pay more and race less.
For me I try and do my part but if membership keeps falling OH WELL DEAL WITH IT.

[BP125V]

not quite

Pat,

You are putting words in my mouth, or should I say post. All I meant to convey was that local clubs and individuals need to step up and make a difference, we can't sit back and rely on the 4 1/2 full time employees of APBA HQ to do everything for us.

[raceright]

Pat,

You are putting words in my mouth, or should I say post. All I meant to convey was that local clubs and individuals need to step up and make a difference, we can't sit back and rely on the 4 1/2 full time employees of APBA HQ to do everything for us.

Ok get your point but 4.5 people to run a 1,000,000.00 a year club????

Thats another story!!
There is no single answer---I for one think if we were to follow the dirt bike type of rules and classes we would all be better off--and hope that the big asian small engine dirt bike co's would come on board and help with our growth.

Stockoutboard helped Mercury become the outboard that was considered the fastest in the 40's 50's and 60's-- and they still have that REP NOW. The Asians might like to have that REP. Only stockoutboard can do that.

[ram95]

If it aint broke.....

If you think something is broke, don't try to fix it until you figure out X-actly what's broke! If I were King, this would by my holy-rule. And, my motto would be 'History repeats itself - Keep yer head out' (of dark smelly places).

With that for guidance, compare these two "repair" attempts:

Messing with the A class. It "aint broke". There's never been a shortage of the OMC 15 motors (with rewind starters). And to think that a MFG would actually build a motor to compete against the OMC without making it a winner makes me wonder, like: "How will I sell this thing (with no rewind) if it doesn't blow the sides off existing equipment?" Huh? And, there is no shortage of existing equipment (OMC A). As an aside, why it made sense to shovel the Merc 15 (with no gearfoot!) into J mystifies me. So, will the "new" motor be a winner? If not how will it sell? And if it's made a winner, what about all those thousands of OMC motors that let you into J and A at an affordable price.

Next we have: New motor for the D class. Yup.. D was headed for X-tinction. With about two hundred (as I am led to believe) 44XS's produced and difficulties finding gearfoots, cowlings, and a few other XS specific parts, the class was headed for the Classics. Along comes Bass Brothers with a virtually off-the-shelf motor, and the D class shows clear signs of revival. Naturally Bass wants to see his motor up front SO HE CAN SELL IT... to the limited number of folks who like running a bigger boat. What happened? In stead of letting the motor run, the Commissioners, in their intimate wisdom (yeah I said 'intimate' not infinite), wisdom known only to themselves, did about everything they could think of (that's why I didn't use the word infinite) to give the Bass Brothers a headache. I might point out that Bass sold 1 motor late last year and none this year. There are still a few 44XS's out there running strong, but fewer and fewer. And, the incentive to buy the Bass Machines motor has been scrunched with all the stupid crap under the guise of a safey restriction and some irrelevant technical limitations.

Finally, we have another All-American class with dwindling entries shooting itself in the foot. In their own intimate wisdom, D-Mod Commissioners dump the Bass Machines motor off the table, crippling D-mod entries.

You decide which case was that of poor trouble-shooting or history repeating itself.

Alex

[Boatracer4fun]

Thinking out loud......again

After reading this thread an the original King thread, i asked myself this question:

Are we just rambling on and on here with pipe dreams or are these great ideas actually being read, noted and or considered?

[blueskyracer]

After reading this thread an the original King thread, i asked myself this question:

Are we just rambling on and on here with pipe dreams or are these great ideas actually being read, noted and or considered?

This really happens every year and will probably always stay a pipe dream but isn't it fun. Enjoy it till the end. You also must remember that this is the off season and folks have a lot of time on there hands and nasty weather outside.

I would say in ten years this site will be called Hydroracermemorys.net

[Al Peffley]

Observations on Racing Venues & Change

I like HD and its website posting services to the boat racing community. It's nice to see people being positive on recognizing volunteer workers and club successes. It's also nice to see whenever someone has a great idea to improve the motorsport. Controversy is sometimes unavoidable. No opinion is apathy and does not invite gradual positive change for the better for the sport. I agree that the class leaders stay pretty silent about racer feedback or change suggestions during the year in the Propeller -- I think that's unfortunate for APBA's membership. There is no "letters to the editor" page; it's a "top-down" information distribution format, with the exceptions of the event report articles and pictures (contributed photography is usually very good).

In 2008 I was race director for an AOF Stock/Mod/PRO classes local race once that had coverage from three local newspapers, low entry fees, and a portion of the race fees were donated to local charities. There was a formal spectator viewing area with about a thousand local spectators to watch it and there was no requirement for any competitor volunteers in course boats or officiating. A professional fire department dive team with certified marine response paramedics and an ambulance crew volunteered to support the event with no fees. The event permit fee was low, there was a carnival present, and we raced on a closed course right next to the town during an annual festival (lots of services and restroom facilities.) There were no other local APBA or AOF regional races that weekend. The weather was beautiful and calm on the race day. The course was right next to the I-5 freeway (easy access and lodging). Five race boats showed up. This location had not been used for boat racing in two decades, but the city still had a provision for boat racing on the lake (no city council or permit obstacles.)

Providing space for spectators and all venue services to racers does not guarantee racer participation or motorsport success. What gives us bad PR is lack of consistency and cooperation to keep the boat race venue simple and consistent, in racing classes format and necessary race resources support. I like Pat's idea of the racing venue being planned like dirt-track motorcycle racing and the format being standardized (except for special events like marathons.) Venue format standards should be established at the national club level (with well-defined levels of classes and promotion of more local community sponsorship of boat racing events.) This is the way it is done in other successful motorsport racing associations - UIM, SCCA, AMA, etc. Sponsors want to be assured that the national or international racing association has a venue format and consistency that will attract more of their customers or citizens to the racing special event. My racing sponsors want positive public exposure with good advertising opportunities in local papers and on my trailer, not just their name on my boat at a race site populated primarily by other boat racers. I just wish USTS races were closer to my region, or USTS had a west coast PRO racing division. Thanks, USTS!

I select the local races that my fellow PRO-class racers support in enough numbers to form a minimum class size or can form a "hybrid" classes heat (like they run in SCCA.) I like a race where one is recognized for their participation (not just a fill-in for venue money attainment). It is just too expensive for me to do otherwise, especially on a fixed income these days. This is not a negative statement, just practical judgment in a depressed economy with more and more EPA/environmentalist group-sponsored restrictions.

We lost one great racing location in Region 10 this year to a small group of well-organized, extremist environmentalists who have been favored by our governor. There was also a lack of good stewardship on the state's part keeping the lake clean and safe from intrusive parasites. Most other lakes in the state have stringent weed control requirements, except this lake that is poorly maintained. The man-made lake is located right next to the state's capitol building on a clean river (active, fresh water recycling is guaranteed with proper flow gates and weed abatement control.) Such a shame.

The points I am making here are that a successful boat racing venue is dictated and maintained by a very critical, cooperative relationship between both racers and local community support agencies, not just spectators or money received from a large number of class entries with a few boats per class. Our classes are becoming too fragmented to attract very many good sponsors. The casinos are very generous to us, but may not continue if we do not make a few changes to draw more outside spectators (read: potential new customers).

I thought everyone behaved themselves pretty well in this thread.

Merry Christmas to all. Thanks Bill for your contribution to our sport and your event-winning, boat building technology. It was good to see you at the kilo event last year at Devil's Lake (I missed this year.)



Al Peffley

[Hunter]

...a simple idea

My work has gotten to be a major interference with boat racing trips. But,if business keeps progressing, I'm going to put up some cash for a drawing at our Chrystal Lake race. Participants get a "raffle" ticket for each entry.Register for multiple classes,you get multiple tickets.(Maybe we won't be able to do this for each class,as I would prefer).At the awards ceremony,we draw for the pot.Every racer is in it,even if you get towed in upside down. I hope this will encourage participation. I think this would work better than cash to win races since the same strong runners win most of the time. Some participants like to take part without an expectation of crossing the finish line first. Considering the distances some people travel to support races,"thanks-for coming" may be sincere but seems a bit hollow. I have lamented for years on the wisdom of the dash for cash at LockHaven. An often major chunk of money goes to one winner of one of the least expensive classes to get into.It would not be much of an event if only C-Hydros showed up.Granted,that one class may be responsible for the continuation of
outboard racing to date.

The bottom line....the way things are today,there needs to be some extra inspiration to nudge racers into a show-up mentality.
Hunter III

[raceright]

My work has gotten to be a major interference with boat racing trips. But,if business keeps progressing, I'm going to put up some cash for a drawing at our Chrystal Lake race. Participants get a "raffle" ticket for each entry.Register for multiple classes,you get multiple tickets.(Maybe we won't be able to do this for each class,as I would prefer).At the awards ceremony,we draw for the pot.Every racer is in it,even if you get towed in upside down. I hope this will encourage participation. I think this would work better than cash to win races since the same strong runners win most of the time. Some participants like to take part without an expectation of crossing the finish line first. Considering the distances some people travel to support races,"thanks-for coming" may be sincere but seems a bit hollow. I have lamented for years on the wisdom of the dash for cash at LockHaven. An often major chunk of money goes to one winner of one of the least expensive classes to get into.It would not be much of an event if only C-Hydros showed up.Granted,that one class may be responsible for the continuation of
outboard racing to date.

The bottom line....the way things are today,there needs to be some extra inspiration to nudge racers into a show-up mentality.
Hunter III

Hunter what seemes to work well in the USTS is SHOW MONEY. Remember USTS races are always 1,000 miles for many and we have found that prize money does not work as well as TOW MONEY Some recieved over $600.oo to show at hartford but we pay by trailer not # of classes or if ya make a start. You need to register and have a tow rig with a boat.

hope this helps

Pat

[Al Peffley]

Tow Money Works

I agree with Pat. In the past when some of our outboard racing classes can participate at local invitational events with the limited inboards club (TIRA) out here, a local General Motors car dealer (Sunset Chevrolet) donated tow money for all participants who show for the event (the main-venue inboards received a higher tow money award, but it always attracted more participants in all classes). The travel costs, by far, are the highest event cost for most established racing teams. It's easier to get racing team sponsors to pay for any racing expenses other than the travel expense. The travel expense will be even harder to recoup after the federal tax rules on business expenses change next year.



Al